Oarside and nonoarside knee extensor strength measures and their relationship to rowing ergometer performance

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Biomechanics
• Exercise Physiology

Background:

• Laterality in strength is a known characteristic in various sports and occupations.
• Understanding unilateral strength differences is crucial for athletic performance and injury prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the knee extensor strength between the oarside and non-oarside legs of intercollegiate rowers.
• To investigate the relationship between specific joint strength measurements and rowing ergometer performance.

Main Methods:

• Fifteen light-weight sweep oarsmen underwent concentric-eccentric knee extensor strength testing.
• Testing was performed at angular velocities of 160 and 200 degrees/sec through a specific range of motion.
• Strength measures included peak and average torques.

Main Results:

• Oarside knee extensors demonstrated greater peak and average torques in most comparisons.
• A statistically significant (p < 0.05) increase of approximately 6% in peak torque was observed for the oarside concentric action at 160 degrees/sec.
• Correlations between strength measures and rowing ergometer performance were low and not statistically significant (p > 0.05).

Conclusions:

• A potential tendency exists for light-weight sweep rowers to develop greater strength in their oarside knee extensors.
• While unilateral and joint-specific tests offer comparative data for training and rehabilitation, they are poor predictors of return to activity or overall rowing performance.